Patrick Biddy (the Association of the 2nd Cavalry of the U.S. Army) at the memorial plaque just
before its unveiling.

I was inspired for the creation of this memorial in 2005 after reading a book by Jindřich Marek
– The Lilac Scoop. This book describes, in a very interesting way, not only a story of Colonel
Reed’s cavalrymen and horses from the stud farm in Hostouň.

After addressing Mayor of Bělá nad Radbuzou, Mr. Picka, sometime in August 2005, we found common
ground and we agreed to establish a working group. At that time, no one thought what a load of work
lay ahead of us and what climax would be our reward. We invited Václav Tauer, Richard Praus,
Jan Salzman and, subsequently, Jerry Toole or the working group.

Our common goal was to build a memorial plaque to commemorate Lance Raymond E. Manz and Technician
of the 5th Grade Owen W. Sutton in the now-extinct village called Rosendorf at the place
where, on 30 April 1945, there was a clash between so-called Patton’s ghosts from group A,
the 42nd Reconnaissance Squadron (MECZ) of the 2nd Cavalry of the U.S. Army
and a unit of the Nazi SS troops.

We became absorbed old documents, searched for old reports, we surfed the internet waves until
we found Mr. Patrick Biddy who is a member of the 2nd Cavalry of the U.S. Army. It was
a really great meeting because, thanks to it, we began to be successful in discovering facts that
we had not expected at the beginning or at the brightest moments.

The result of our joint and gruelling work materialized in the unveiling of a memorial plaque
in the extinct village of Rosendorf on 28 April 2006. The greatest experience for me was a personal
meeting with Patrick Biddy who came from the U.S. to attend the unveiling personally.

Although it was cloudy during the unveiling of the plaque I think no one particularly minded.
At the moment when Patrick and Mayor Picka were unveiling the plaque, I was really proud of our
Military Car Club, which is able to work purposefully and to commemorate our history even at places
where it was totally unacceptable in our recent communist past.

The guard of honour of the Military Car Club Plzeň at the memorial plaque in Rosendorf.

It has been done. Rudolf Bayer and Patrick Biddy immediately after the unveiling of the memorial
plaque on 28 April 2006. The cavalry hat on my head was given to me by Patrick.

Given how everyone interested sank into their work, I and the mayor began to form the idea of building
a truly representative memorial that would remind with dignity the victims who sacrificed their
lives, even if they did not have to, for the freedom of other nations. On the day of unveiling
the memorial plaque, we were already working intensively on the unveiling of a monument in Bělá
nad Radbuzou.

The Military Car Club members at the unveiled memorial plaque in Rosendorf with Ms. Eliška
Hašková Coolidge and. Patrick Biddy.

A meeting of the working group in Bělá nad Radbuzou on 28 April 2006. From the left: Mayor Libor
Picka, Václav Tauer, Patrick Biddy, Jan Salzman, Rudolf Bayer, Jerry Tool and Richard Praus.

Then we sweated, wrote emails, telephoned, sometimes swore and, wiped litres of sweat at the thought
that something will finally turn out badly but the result surprised even ourselves. In our opinion,
one of the greatest achievements was establishing direct contacts with the families of the killed
soldiers, Raymond E. Manz and Owen W. Sutton. The climax was the arrival of the Manz family members
to Bělá nad Radbuzou on 16 September 2006. Unfortunately, the Sutton family apologized at the last
minute due to health reasons. It was a unique opportunity to express our thanks to those who
deserved it most. We were honoured by the presence of 90 soldiers from the 2nd Cavalry
of the U.S. Army, who also attended the unveiling ceremony and, of course, we must not forget
the personal presence of General Antonín Špaček, a Czechoslovak war hero.

On 16 September 2006, after a year-long intensive preparation, we succeeded in commemorating
Raymond E. Manz and Owen W. Sutton, to unveil a memorial in Bělá nad Radbuzou.

The Manz family, Patrick Biddy (the 2nd Cavalry Association), the members of the
2nd Cavalry of the U.S. Army, the members of the Military Car Club and other guests
during the ceremony at the memorial plaque in Rosendorf on 16 September 2006.

The Manz family just before the unveiling of the memorial in Bělá nad Radbuzou on 16 September 2006.

The memorial in honour of Raymond E. Manz and Owen W. Sutton has just been unveiled.

Rudolf Bayer with his wife and daughter with the Manz family at the memorial plaque in Rosendorf.
Lawrence Manz (fourth on the right) is a cousin of Raymond Manz, the deceased soldier. Both
were great friends. He is a veteran of the Korean War.

All the nervousness is over. Everything turned out well. In the middle there are Lieutenant
Colonel Bryan Denny of the 2nd Cavalry and Richard Praus.

War hero General Antonín Špaček is making an entry into the visitor’s book of the Military Car
Club Plzeň on 16 September 2006.

Soldiers of 2nd Cavalery with Military Car Clubu Pilsen members in their US Campu
in Bělá nad Radbuzou.

My thanks belong to everyone who has helped to convert the original idea into reality. Special
thanks belong to:

Mayor of Bělá nad Radbůzou Mr. Libor Picka

Member of 2nd Cavalery Association Mr. Patrick Biddy

Honorary member of Military Car Clubu Pilsen – Richard Praus

Václav Tauer

Jan Salzman

Václav Janda

Jerry Tool

2nd Cavalery Ltc. Col. Bryen E. Denny

Historian of 2nd Cavalery Mr. David Gettman

Members of Military Car Club Pilsen

I would express special thanks to the first President of the Military Car Club Plzeň, Mr. Milan
Dlouhý, who had inspired me and supported in getting the whole thing through to the successful end.

Rudolf Bayer
Chairman of the club
Military Car Club Plzeň

A legend of memorial in Bělá nad Radbuzou – "Patton's ghosts"

Toujours pret! Always ready! Vždy připraven!

Lance Raymond E. Manz

5th class technician Owen W. Sutton

Map showing the advance of the 42nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron

Lipizzaner horses with the 2nd Cavalry (sometime in May 1945)

General George S. Patton riding a seized Lipizzaner horse

The motto that could be seen on the sleeves of uniforms of American cavalrymen more than sixty
years ago. They were the soldiers of the 2nd Cavalry Group who fulfilled the orders
issued by their commander here in late April and early May 1945. It was quite a unique and
extraordinary action in the history of their activities on the European battlefield. It consisted
of the liberation of prisoners of war while also saving hundreds of thoroughbred horses. Therefore,
in the spirit of the above motto – always prepared, they were trained perfectly for this action.
It was carried in the hearts of Pfc Raymond E. Manz and Technician of the 5th Grade Owen W. Sutton,
whose names are engraved, in eternal memory, on the newly unveiled memorial to the fallen in Bělá
nad Radbuzou. They were prepared both to fight and to sacrifice their lives for the freedom
of oppressed peoples and the liberation of Europe from the fascist enemy. The place, where the final
part of the motto was completely fulfilled for them, lies nearby. It happened on a forest road
running along the green trail to Karlova Huť, Valdorf and Pleš to the border with Bavaria. The battle,
fatal for both the men, took place at the edge of the now-extinct village of Rosendorf (Růžov) on
30 April 1945. During this battle, Pfc Manz was killed and Technician of the 5th Grad
Sutton died in hospital due to his serious injuries the next day. According to the wishes
of the families, the remains of both the American soldiers were transported to their native places
and laid with dignity in cemeteries in Toledo, Ohio, and Kinston, North Carolina, after the war.
On 28 April 2006, a memorial plaque was unveiled at the place where the battle actually took place.
It is located at the ruins of the foundations of a farmhouse originally standing there. For further
details, refer to the text on an information board near the memorial.

What brought U.S. cavalrymen to these places in late April and early May 1945?

The 2nd Cavalry Group, under the command of Colonel Charles H. Reed was, during
the described period, part XII Corps of the 3rd U.S. Army of General Patton. It consisted
of the 2nd and 42nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron. It was motivated by the
Corps command to cover the left wing of the corps troops during further advance over the border
mountains to the inland of our state. Even before this advance commenced, a completely random
message fell into the hands of the cavalry commander. Not far behind border forests, near around
Hostouň and Bělá nad Radbuzou, English, American, French and Polish prisoners of war were interned.
A plan was conceived immediately to move over the border and to free them. The task was not a simple
matter. Between the border and Bělá, German SS divisions were mapping the advance of American troops
along the border within the band of former Sudetenland. The cavalrymen’s initial intention was
supported by yet other news about deposited horses that was given to Col. Reed – an ardent horse
lover – by a German Army vet, acting in the role of a parliamentarian. It was about 650 horses
– 250 Lipizzaner horses from the imperial riding academy in Hofburg, Vienna, and stallions of the King
of Yugoslavia, Petar, and the Nazi Foreign Minister, Ribbentrop. Furthermore, there were horses
of the Kabardin, Arab and Don breeds, including two English thoroughbreds. The pursuance of a specific
action was finally decided when agreement was reached, through the German parliamentarian, with
the Hostouň Wehrmacht headquarters.

It was agreed that a non-attack zone near Hostouň would be created, that the Wehrmacht units
would leave this zone and that the cavalrymen would be guided through mined areas by the Germans.

The 42nd Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, in particular its regiment "A", was charged
with this task – under code-name Stewart – on 28 April 1945. This regiment was further supplemented
by a platoon of M5 or M24 light tanks from the "F" Company and a platoon of M8 self-propelled howitzers
from the "E" regiment. Regiments "B" and "C" provided side coverage. The actual action in securing
and guiding the horses over the border of the republic was given code name "Cowboy Operation".
The "A" regiment assumed a major role in this case as well. The penetration to Bělá, Hostouň and
adjacent villages and seizure of all the deposited horses were performed successfully and the horses
got new tenders. A counterattack of the German SS troops on in Rosendorf 30 April 1945 resulted
in the death of Raymond Manz and Owen Sutton and other wounded men. Despite the tragic event,
the cavalrymen remained the "tenders" of these horses until the end of the war.

The actual transport of the horses over border began on 12 May 1945 after until the final German
surrender and the end of war actions. First, it was directed to Schwarzenberg in Bavaria, then,
in two stages from 18 till 25 May, to Sankt Martin near Neustadt, from where 215 horses were returned
to Austria. The remaining horses were declared war booty transported by ship to the United States
from the Italian port of Genoa. Part of them returned on 20 September. 250 horses were taken over
by an army vet, Major Babarin; draught-horses and the thoroughbreds remained in Czech
administration and part of the Lipizzaners returned to Lipica, Slovenia.

The famous "Patton’s ghosts" – whose origins date back to 1836 – left our country during the exchange
of the front-line troops. Let us remind that, after landing on the Utah Beach on 19 June 1944,
they were immediately integrated into Patton’s 3rd Army. They completed their WWII
campaign in the former Czechoslovakia after battles throughout western Europe. They did not stay
here long because left in the period from 15 to 17 May 1945. However, their new dislocation was
not far away. They only moved across the border to the Bavarian Kötzting. The border zone they
guarded was gradually extended to Grafenau. So they could be seen in Cham, Regen and other
Bavarian border towns and villages. Gradually, there was their organizational transformation to
the 2nd Police Regiment and subsequently to the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment.
In 1955, they returned briefly to the USA to Fort Meade in Maryland. It did not even last three
years and their territory of action became Germany once again. The headquarters is located in
Nuremberg and the unit resumes its tasks in guarding the border. In cooperation with the German
border police, it was a stretch of 731 km in length with countries behind the "Iron Curtain",
i.e. East Germany and Czechoslovakia. The demolition of the "Iron Curtain" and the opening
of the borders eastward mean that their specific military expertise in Germany has lost military
justification. Therefore, they are entrusted with other tasks outside Europe in the following
years. In 2006, the cavalry is gradually transferred once again to Bavaria from the USA. At the
time when we unveil the memorial to two heroes from this unit in Bělá, the relocation of the unit
should have been completed and the unit welcomed solemnly in Germany. The main headquarters will
be in Vilseck near the border. As has been said by Bělá Mayor, Ing. Libor Picka, "a new partnership
with the city and, subsequently, with the cavalry headquarters may arise from it". A real
speculation offers itself that we may welcome the "Patton’s ghosts" once again at a future memorial
ceremony. Then it is quite possible that the sons or grandsons of those heroes, who fought for
our freedom in 1945, will be seen among the soldiers.